Escalating Crime in Washington, DC: Concerns Raised by Janine Pirro
Janine Pirro, a lawyer from the District of Columbia, expressed strong concerns on Sunday regarding the city’s escalating crime crisis. She pointed out that violent offenders remain on the streets, contributing to a rising sense of insecurity.
President Donald Trump had previously mobilized the National Guard in Washington, DC, on August 11, resulting in over 1,000 arrests, including some linked to the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang. During her appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” Pirro highlighted that the capital has become one of the most dangerous cities globally, afflicted by multiple shootings, stabbings, and severe assaults, all while the police struggle to obtain convictions.
“President Trump has genuinely transformed the safety landscape in Washington, DC,” she remarked to host Shannon Breem. “I often think about who determines the threshold for acceptable crime levels. Is it enough to just settle for a bit of improvement? Should we merely shrug it off and leave? That’s certainly not what this is about regarding President Trump.”
Pirro drew attention to the fact that in the last 20 months, 45 black teenagers have been shot in DC.
“Washington has emerged as one of the most violent cities—not just in the U.S., but in the world. It’s important to recognize the reality here. Numerous individuals have faced gun violence, stabbings, and other brutalities without any arrest.” She emphasized the grim statistics regarding young victims: “In the past year and a half, 45 minority teenagers lost their lives to gun violence. What does that say about our resolution rate? It’s only 29%,” she added.
Pirro suggested that crime in the city has, perhaps unintentionally, been allowed to spiral out of control.
“The numbers reveal that 70% of murders involving African American teenagers are committed using firearms, yet these individuals remain armed and active. This is unacceptable. The fundamental role of any government should be to protect its citizens,” she elaborated.
She noted that President Trump is committed to ensuring that DC receives the necessary resources to combat this crisis effectively. So far, there have been 1,528 arrests, with 156 individuals removed from the streets.
A Harvard Caps/Harris poll indicated that 54% of respondents support Trump’s declaration of a public safety emergency in Washington and the deployment of the National Guard. Furthermore, data from the DC police union showed a considerable drop in crime rates during the initial two weeks of this initiative, with robbery incidents decreasing by 42% and carjackings by 85%.
The issue of violent crime has dominated discussions following attempts to address carjackings, particularly after the murder of 21-year-old intern Eric Tarpinian Yachim and an aggressive assault on a government staff member known as “Big Ball.”
